Feeding Utensil

ABSTRACT

Utensils including a cover for at least a portion of the working end of the utensil. The cover may be in the form of a “scoop” located at the rearward portion of the working end of a utensil so that a user, such as a child, may lift the utensil vertically and still avoid spilling a significant portion of the food. The utensil may include a handle having a handle portion thicker than a conventional child utensil handle. The handle may be curved for easier handling. The cover may include indicia such as a character appealing to a user, such as a cartoon, animated character, celebrity or the like.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 61/560,858 filed Nov. 17, 2011, incorporated by reference herein inits entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of utensils for feeding. Morespecifically, it relates to feeding spoons and forks, particularly thoseused for feeding infants, young children, disabled persons etc.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

When infants and toddlers are attempting to learn how to use eatingutensils it is common for them to wrap their entire hand around thehandle of the utensil, scoop the utensil into the food, soup, etc., andlift the utensil vertical, so that it is perpendicular to the eatingsurface, spilling the food out of the utensil, resulting in frustrationfor the child and a mess for the parent.

Children and adults with disabilities which adversely affect the abilityto manipulate utensils also have difficulty managing feeding from aconventional utensil and would benefit from a modified utensil.

Thus it would be desirable to provide a utensil that retains food evenwhen the utensil is oriented in a manner which would result in the foodbeing spilled from the utensil.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one embodiment a utensil is provided which includes acover for at least a portion of the working end of the utensil. Asdefined herein the working end of a utensil is the end which is used topick up and/or hold food, such as the bowl of a spoon or tines of afork. The cover may be in the form of a “scoop” located at the rearwardportion of the working end of a utensil so that a user, such as a child,may lift the utensil vertically and still avoid spilling a significantportion of the food.

In accordance with another embodiment, a utensil is provided having acover for at least a portion of the working end of the utensil and ahandle having a handle portion thicker than a conventional child utensilhandle. The handle may be curved for easier handling.

Utensils in accordance with the disclosed subject matter be a spoon,fork, “spork” etc.

The cover may include indicia such as a character appealing to a user,such as a cartoon, animated character, celebrity or the like. In anotherembodiment, the working end of the utensil may have further indicia, inthe bowl or tine portion for example, which is viewable when no food ison the part but is obstructed when food is on the part. As food is eatenand removed from the part, the indicia is revealed.

Advantages of the disclosed subject matter include building a child'sconfidence in feeding, lowering frustration levels for a child engagedin the task of eating, creating greater efficiency in feeding,increasing the amount of sustenance a user receives during an eatingsession, greater nutrition for the user, and less mess to clean. Theinclusion of indicia aids in encouragement of a child to eat.

Given above is a simplified summary in order to provide a basicunderstanding of some aspects described herein. This summary is not anextensive overview, and is not intended to identify key/criticalelements or to delineate the scope of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

So that those having ordinary skill in the art will have a betterunderstanding of how to make and use the disclosed systems and methods,reference is made to the accompanying figure wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top view of a utensil according to one embodiment of thedisclosed subject matter;

FIG. 1A is a side perspective view of a utensil in accordance with theembodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of a utensil in accordance with theembodiment of FIG. 1 taken along line A-A′;

FIG. 2 is a top view of a utensil according to one embodiment of thedisclosed subject matter;

FIG. 3 is a top view of a working end of a fork-type utensil accordingto one embodiment of the disclosed subject matter;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a working end of a utensil according to oneembodiment of the disclosed subject matter;

FIG. 5 is a top view of a working end of a utensil according to oneembodiment of the disclosed subject matter;

FIG. 6 is a top view of a utensil according to one embodiment of thedisclosed subject matter; and

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of a utensil in accordance with theembodiment of FIG. 6 taken along line B-B′.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following is a detailed description of the invention provided to aidthose skilled in the art in practicing the present invention. Those ofordinary skill in the art may make modifications and variations in theembodiments described herein without departing from the spirit or scopeof the present invention. Unless otherwise defined, all technical andscientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonlyunderstood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this inventionbelongs. The terminology used in the description of the invention hereinis for describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to belimiting of the invention. All publications, patent applications,patents, figures and other references mentioned herein are expresslyincorporated by reference in their entirety.

Now referring to FIG. 1, utensil 10 includes handle 20 a working end 30and a cover 40. Utensil 10 may be a spoon, fork, spork, etc. Utensil 10may be any suitable size for a given user. For example for infants andchildren under age six utensil 10 may be from about 3 to about 6 inchesin length, while older children may require a longer utensil, such asone ranging from about 4 to about 7 inches. Adults may require largersizes, ranging from about 6 to about 9 inches.

Handle 20 may be any suitable shape for gripping by a user. The handle20 may have a thickness of about 0.5 to about 1 inch for children underage six, for easier gripping by an infant or toddlers, and larger orsmaller for older children and adults. The handle may be about 2 toabout 7 inches in length. For example for infants and children under agesix handle 20 may be from about 2 to about 5 inches in length, whileolder children may require a longer handle, such as one ranging fromabout 3 to about 6 inches. Adults may require larger sizes, ranging fromabout 4 to about 8 inches.

Now further referring to FIGS. 2-4, the working end 30 may be a spoonbowl or fork comprising essentially tines, or a combination thereof,known conventionally as a spork. The bowl of a spoon may be from about0.0125 to about 0.5 inches in depth.

Cover 40 is positioned adjacent the handle 20 and covers a portion ofthe working end 30 of the utensil. Cover 40 is operable to permit foodbeing picked up by the working end 30. Many foods consumed by users ofthe utensil 10 are soft, such as strained vegetables, applesauce, etc.,and/or small, such as carrots, peas, etc. Some portion of these foodswhen placed on the working end 30 will be retained by the cover 40during manipulations of the utensil by the user, so that the food willstill be on the utensil when it reaches the user's mouth.

Now referring to FIGS. 1-5, cover 40 has a leading edge 42 which extendsfrom a working end edge 32. Leading edge 42 may have a top-view profilewhich curves inward toward the handle 20 (as shown in FIGS. 1-1B and 3),outward from the handle 20 (as shown in FIG. 2), or other (see FIGS. 4and 5). The cover 40 may have a length of about 0.5 to about 1 inchmeasured from the center of the leading edge 32 to the base of theworking end 30 proximal to the handle 20. The uncovered portion of theworking end 30 may be about 0.5 to about 1 inch in length measured fromthe center of the leading edge 32 to the tip of the working end 30distal from the handle 20.

Now referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, cover 40 may include one or more vents50 which permit easier flow of food into the area of the utensil coveredby the cover 40. Vents 50 also facilitate easy cleaning of the utensil10.

Now referring to FIG. 5, cover 40 and/or working end 30 may furtherinclude indicia 60 designed to encourage eating. Indicia 60 may includecharacters, designs, etc. For example, indicia 60 may be a characterlikeness which may have a portion thereof located on the cover 40 andthe remaining portion on the working end 30. The indicia 60 may beviewable on the working end 30 when no food is on the working end 30 butobstructed when food is on the working end 30. As food is eaten andremoved from the working end 30, the indicia 60, in this example theremaining portion of the character likeness, is revealed so that theentire character likeness is viewable. In this way eating is a made intoa fun activity.

With further reference to FIGS. 6 and 6A, the leading edge 42 may have alip 44 extending therefrom and downward toward the bowl 30 to preventspillage of food.

While the depicted embodiments show a cover 30 which is integral withthe utensil 10, one skilled in the art will recognize a separate coverelement 30 could be employed, such as by a snap-fit over a conventionalutensil. Such an embodiment would include elements for engaging theedges of a working end of a utensil, such as one or more resilient tabsdisposed along the edges of the cover element.

Non-limiting examples of dimensions of utensils in accordance with thepresent disclosure may include a whole spoon length of 6 inches,including the handle; a handle 4.5 inches in length; a length of 0.75inches from the bowl end proximal the handle to the cover 40; a lengthof 0.75 inches for the cover 40 measured from the end of the handle 20proximal the bowl 30 to the leading edge 42 of the cover; width ofhandle 0.75 inches at maximum width; width of handle 0.25 inches atportion of handle proximal the bowl 30; thickness (top to bottom) of thehandle 0.75 inches at location of maximum thickness; thickness of handle(top to bottom) 0.25-0.5 inches at portion of handle proximal the bowl30, and thickness gradually increases to maximum thickness along thelength of the handle toward the end distal the bowl 30; length of bowl1.5 inches; width of bowl 1.25 inches; maximum depth of bowl 0.75inches.

Although the devices of the present disclosure have been described withreference to exemplary embodiments thereof, the present disclosure isnot limited thereby. Indeed, the exemplary embodiments areimplementations of the disclosed systems and methods are provided forillustrative and non-limitative purposes. Changes, modifications,enhancements and/or refinements to the disclosed systems and methods maybe made without departing from the spirit or scope of the presentdisclosure. Accordingly, such changes, modifications, enhancementsand/or refinements are encompassed within the scope of the presentinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A utensil comprising a handle and a working endextending therefrom, and a cover disposed adjacent the handle and over aportion of the working end proximal the handle.
 2. The utensil accordingto claim 1 wherein the utensil comprises a spoon and the working endcomprises a bowl.
 3. The utensil according to claim 1 wherein theutensil comprises a spork and the working end comprises a bowl and tinesextending therefrom in a direction opposite the handle.
 4. The utensilaccording to claim 1 wherein the cover includes at least one openingformed therein.
 5. The utensil according to claim 2 wherein the coverincludes at least one opening formed therein.
 6. The utensil accordingto claim 3 wherein the cover includes at least one opening formedtherein.
 7. The utensil according to claim 1 wherein the working endcomprises indicia on at least one surface thereof.
 8. The utensilaccording to claim 1 wherein the cover comprises a side facing theworking end and a side facing away from the working end, and comprisesindicia formed on the side facing away from the working end.
 9. Theutensil according to claim 7 wherein the cover comprises a side facingthe working end and a side facing away from the working end, andcomprises indicia formed on the side facing away from the working end.10. The utensil according to claim 1 wherein the cover comprises aleading edge and a lip extending from the leading edge toward a surfaceof the working end.
 11. The utensil according to claim 1 comprising acurved handle.